Directed by Tinto Brass, SENSO '45 takes place during the waning period of Nazi occupation in Venice, and is based on an 1882 novella written by Camillo Boito. When a wealthy, politically connected older woman named Livia (Anna Galiena) develops a relationship with Helmut (Gabriel Garko), a rakish, opportunistic SS officer, both are sucked into a state of moral decline similar to that which the country itself has gone into since the occupation. SENSO '45 also features Franco Branciaroli, Antonio Salines, Loredana Cannata, Erika Savastani, and Simona Borioni.